Console, Code, Change: Tapping the power of video games for social impact

• by Akhand Tiwari and Poulomi Ghosh
• May 27, 2026
• 3 min

India’s rapidly growing gaming industry can either reinforce harmful biases or drive positive social change. The op-ed highlights how games build empathy, confidence, and decision-making skills. It urges developers, policymakers, and civil society to create inclusive, socially impactful gaming experiences.

Look around at any metro coach, university canteen, or waiting room. The world is not just looking down at their phones; they are plugged into a parallel reality. From Call of Duty to Candy Crush, games have evolved from mere distractions into the primary ways in which we think, connect, and see ourselves. But while we have spent ages debating the economics of this digital gaming empire, we have largely ignored its unique potential to bring positive social change.

With industry projections of over 500 million gamers in India today and an estimated 700 million by 2030, the sheer scale of this industry is staggering. Globally, it is eclipsing the music and film industries combined. But scale without intent can also be damaging. Research finds a positive correlation between addiction to gaming, especially war games, and increased aggression among adolescent males. Women gamers report online harassment and abuse. Many games rely on stereotypical gender representation that reinforces real-world bias. Without a responsible lens, games can replicate inequality rather than challenge it.

We are currently at a crossroads. The recently Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, focuses primarily on regulating real-money games. However, it also offers a constructive pathway for social innovation, including the promotion of games for education and social change. We can continue to let games mirror our societal inequalities or use the Act to do something far more ambitious ― change adverse social norms!

Here is the superpower that games have over every other medium: agency. Films let you just watch, while games force you to participate and act. When a player faces a moral dilemma in a game, they do not just witness a story; they choose a path and live with the consequences, albeit in virtual reality, but a reality nonetheless. This can be key to build genuine empathy and skills.

• Evidence in action: Titles like Never Alone or That Dragon, Cancer prove that interactive storytelling can cultivate emotional depth in ways movies never could.
• Real-world impact: Consider Go Nisha Go, which equipped adolescent girls with the confidence to navigate complex sexual and reproductive health decisions.

These are not just games; they are training grounds for real-world resilience. Research shows that well-designed games sharpen problem-solving, decision-making, and critical systems thinking. The economic argument is just as loud as the social one. When games model equality and inclusion, they are not just being nice. They are fostering a more equitable workforce. Agency practiced in digital spaces can translate into confidence, participation, and leadership in the real economy.

Development practitioners have long used games as tools to nudge and shift norms and attitudes. The challenge now is bringing that intent to the digital gaming arena.

• To the developers: Prioritize inclusive, gender-intentional design that builds sensitivity and empathy.
• To the policymakers: Use the National Online Gaming Commission to incentivize social innovation in gaming, moving the discussion away from policing consumption.
• To civil society: Shift from being critics to collaborators to developers. Partner with them to make constructive content.

Treating games as tools for social change requires intention, not reinvention. India has the talent, the policy momentum, and a massive, plugged-in audience to lead this transition.

The game is on. How we play is what matters.

This was first published on 27th May 2026 by ET Edge Insights.